The war in Ukraine has officially entered its third year, leaving vast regions devastated.
Northeastern areas like Kharkiv and southern regions such as Kherson and Mykolaiv have endured relentless missile strikes and, on an unprecedented scale, the weaponization of UAVs, or drones. The result has been widespread destruction and significant loss of life.
Both Russia and Ukraine have deployed a mix of commercially available and industrially manufactured drones to inflict casualties and gain territorial advantages. The conflict has become a grinding war of attrition, with drones at the forefront—offering a grim preview of future warfare. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and others have recognized the disruption caused by advances in drone technology and the changes needed at the Department of Defense to account for it.
As Vice President J.D. Vance warned in a recent interview:
If you look at where we are with the rise of artificial intelligence, with the rise of drone technology and drone warfare, we have to really, top-to-bottom, change the way that we fund the procurement of weapons, the way that arm our troops. This is a major of disruption and we think that Pete Hegseth is the guy to lead the job.
America’s adversaries are advancing relentlessly, seeking to undermine U.S. military strength. The threats posed by near-peer competitors like China and Russia are already significant, but the proliferation of low-cost, highly effective drones has also emboldened nonstate actors, making the battlefield more unpredictable than ever.
Unfortunately, U.S. forces have already suffered casualties from this new threat.
In Jan. 2024, a U.S. base in Jordan, near the Syrian border, was attacked by an “uncrewed aerial system” launched by Iran-backed militias, killing three U.S. service members and injuring 40 others, according to the Department of Defense. This tragic incident exposed a critical weakness in U.S. national security and underscored the escalating danger of drone warfare. The attack not only demonstrated the lethal effectiveness of drones but also raised urgent concerns about the Pentagon’s ability to detect and neutralize these low-cost, high-impact threats before they strike again.
A Nov. 25 Stars and Stripes article detailed a Pentagon report on U.S. forces in Syria and Iraq, stating: “…the Pentagon said U.S. forces had been attacked 125 times in Syria and 79 times in Iraq since Oct. 2023,” with attacks consisting of both artillery and drones.
In a an early December statement, the Department of Defense further warned: “Unmanned aerial systems, most commonly known as drones, pose the most significant threat at this time and increasingly in the U.S. homeland.”
This raises serious concerns about the U.S.’s ability to counter the growing drone threat. One promising technology is directed energy weapons. During an Army training exercise at Yuma Proving Ground in 2024, a simulation involved up to 50 small drones in what was described as “a mass [Unmanned Aircraft System] attack scenario.” In May 2024, General James J. Mingus, the U.S. Army Vice Chief of Staff, testified before the Senate: “One of the primary focus areas of the Army’s counter-UAS efforts is the development of directed-energy systems, including high-energy lasers and microwave weapons, capable of disabling or destroying UAS platforms at extended ranges.”
While directed energy weapons have proven effective, their deployment remains limited. The last units to receive training in these systems—the 82nd Airborne Division and the 1st Cavalry Division—were expected to receive counter-small UAS (C-sUAS) systems by the end of 2024.
However, these weapons have yet to be deployed across the entire Army. Many units still lack access as integration and testing continue. Additionally, many of these systems remain in prototype stages, further delaying widespread adoption. The U.S. military cannot afford to lag in countering the evolving drone threat. As adversaries continue to refine their drone capabilities, the Pentagon must accelerate its efforts to equip American forces with cutting-edge defense systems—before another deadly attack occurs.